A Mortal's Journey to Immortality

Inside the wooden cabin, Wang Mian shifted his gaze elsewhere, knowing that his junior brother Zhou Ping had his own plans. He paused for a moment, then spoke.

"Actually, in the Five Elements Realm, the Time Fruit is a rather useless spiritual treasure because it cannot be taken out of this realm. Only in the special environment of the Five Elements Realm can it maintain its original effects. If it is forcibly taken out, it will turn into an ordinary spiritual fruit, which will have no other effects except for containing abundant spiritual power."

"There are two reasons why the five great sects value this world so much. First, this world also nurtures many spiritual herbs of heaven and earth. Although these herbs are not as heaven-defying as the Time Fruit, they are the most scarce type of foundation-building spiritual objects in the cultivation world. The main ingredients of the rare foundation-building pills in the world can all be found here."

"Secondly, this realm is actually the foundation of our five great sects. The predecessor of the five sects, the Xuan Yuan Five Elements Temple, rose to prominence from this and gradually became a giant in this cultivation world. Over the years, pure five-element spiritual objects will be born within it, and these five-element spiritual objects have great uses for the five sects. For details, take some time to visit the Dao Asking Pavilion on Jingxin Peak. There you will find a detailed introduction to our sect's five-element spiritual objects."

"The main ingredient of the Foundation Building Pill!?"

Upon hearing these words, Zhou Ping was so shocked that he stood up abruptly.

"The Foundation Establishment Pill that Senior Brother mentioned, is that the miraculous pill in the cultivation world that can help late-stage Qi Refining cultivators break through to the Foundation Establishment stage!?"

"What other elixir could it be?"

Wang Mian glanced at the shocked Zhou Ping and replied in a calm tone.

"No wonder...no wonder..."

Zhou Ping sat back down on the wooden chair, his expression slightly changed as he whispered.

He finally understood why the Five Sects valued the Five Elements Realm Trial so much; it held the future hope of the Five Great Profound Sects and was the foundation for a sect's long-term prosperity.

Possessing the Five Elements Realm ensures the sect's future succession, preventing the embarrassing situation of lower-level disciples being unable to advance to the Foundation Establishment stage, and guaranteeing that the sect can provide a stable promotion path for lower-level disciples.

This promotion path is the standard that distinguishes super sects from ordinary forces. Sects without this path may prosper for a hundred or a thousand years because of a few outstanding disciples, but once they lose such talents and have no successors, they will immediately decline and even gradually perish.

The Tongyang Temple master and disciples that Zhou Ping had previously encountered were a living example. With no successors, the Tongyang Temple could only sit and eat away at its resources, eventually disappearing into the long river of time in the cultivation world.

Zhou Ping was very familiar with all kinds of pills needed by cultivators in the Qi Refining stage. Although he had only heard of most of them and had never seen them, it did not stop him from focusing most of his attention on them.

He had already seen the Foundation Establishment Pill, the most extraordinary pill for Qi Refining stage cultivators, in Mingxin's brief introduction to alchemy, and it even contained the pill's refining formula.

Unfortunately, in the cultivation world, pill formulas are easy to obtain, but spiritual herbs are hard to find. Even if everyone knows how to refine this pill, 99% of cultivators are in the awkward situation of being unable to cook without rice.

On the contrary, Zhou Ping did not show any extreme reaction to the Five Elements Spiritual Objects mentioned by Wang Mian. The reason was simple: this was the first time he had heard of such an object, and he had no concept of it at all.

"Junior Brother Zhou, since Senior Uncle Yun is unwilling to speak personally and instead directs you to come here to me, do you know what his intention is?"

Looking at Zhou Ping's changing expression, Wang Mian asked a strange question.

"this......"

After hesitating for a moment, Zhou Ping looked at Wang Mian's meaningful, aged face and tentatively continued,

"Having heard your words, Senior Brother, Junior Brother now understands the opportunities and dangers of the Five Elements Realm Trial. Given Zhou Ping's shallow cultivation, Uncle Yun certainly wouldn't want me to scheme for those spiritual items. He's probably warning Zhou Ping, hoping he'll follow Senior Brother Wang's example... and wait until he has sufficient strength and cultivation before pursuing the spiritual fruits?"

"Tsk tsk tsk! Junior brother's cultivation is mediocre, but at such a young age, his mind far surpasses that of his peers! If I had half your composure and maturity back then, I wouldn't have ended up like this..."

Wang Mian looked at Zhou Ping with admiration in his eyes and said with a slight sigh.

"Senior Brother Wang, please don't flatter me. Even though I'm timid and cautious, I've ended up in the same situation as you. I don't deserve your praise."

Zhou Ping waved his hand dismissively and said with a wry smile.

"Alright, let's not talk about that anymore. Now that Junior Brother Zhou has guessed Uncle Yun's deeper meaning, he should know what to do next."

Wang Mian sighed, seemingly somewhat disheartened.

"Uncle Yun probably means that he wants me to focus my attention on the next Five Elements Realm Trial in twenty-four years from now."

Zhou Ping also sighed slightly, saying with some helplessness.

After all, given his current cultivation level, even if he were lucky enough to advance to the seventh level of the Qi Refining stage in four years, he would still be among the weakest in the Five Elements Realm, and participating in it would be tantamount to suicide.

Even ordinary people know how dangerous it is, let alone Zhou Ping, who is becoming increasingly cautious and afraid of death.

"Now that Junior Brother Zhou has grasped the true meaning, my task is complete. Does Junior Brother have any further questions?"

Seeing that Zhou Ping knew what was important and how to conduct himself, and was not blinded by the rare treasures in the Five Elements Realm, Wang Mian knew that Uncle Yun's intention had been conveyed, and then nodded with relief and asked.

Hearing this, Zhou Ping vaguely understood the implication of seeing him off. Realizing he had already troubled the place for too long, he quickly rose, bowed again to Wang Mian in thanks, and then sincerely bid farewell.

"Zhou Ping thanks Senior Brother Wang for his guidance. Now that my doubts have been resolved, I will no longer disturb your cultivation."

"Take care, Junior Brother Zhou. I won't get up to see you off."

Wang Mian nodded to Zhou Ping in response to Zhou Ping's thanks, then moved his body and lay back down on the bed.

Seeing this, Zhou Ping stopped interrupting and slowly retreated towards the door.

But as he was about to leave through the door, he seemed to remember something, and hesitated as he looked at Wang Mian inside the room, unsure of how to speak.

"If Junior Brother Zhou has any further questions, please feel free to ask."

Wang Mian noticed Zhou Ping's unusual behavior. Seeing him standing at the door, seemingly wanting to say something but hesitating, he calmly said...

"Senior brother, after hearing your story, I still have some questions that I haven't been able to answer. May I ask you about them?"

"Just say it directly, there's no need to beat around the bush."

After hearing Wang Mian's answer, Zhou Ping thought for a moment, but still voiced his doubts.

"Since Uncle Yun saved Senior Brother back then, the sect must have known about it. I wonder what the fate of the Fan family in Dingyuan City has been. After all, they dared to slaughter the families and relatives of the sect's disciples and harm the Qinglian disciples right under the noses of the Qinglian Xuanzong in Dianyun Prefecture. The sect certainly won't let it go like this, right?"

After Zhou Ping finished speaking, the room fell into an eerie silence. Wang Mian looked at the man with a look of surprise, as if he hadn't expected him to ask such a question.

After a moment of silence, Wang Mian sighed softly. Zhou Ping's question had once again stirred up painful memories in his heart. His voice was slightly hoarse as he spoke.

"Several powerful cultivation clans in Dingyuan City have long been dependent on our sect, and their ancestors were all disciples of the Azure Lotus Sect. Given this connection, Junior Brother Zhou, what kind of punishment do you think the sect would take for a dispensable Qi Refining stage disciple?"

"Furthermore, behind these families stands a towering tree, whose influence within the Qinglian Xuanzong sect is deeply entrenched. Junior Brother, what punishment do you think the Fan family of Dingyuan City will receive?"

After being asked two questions in a row, Wang Mian's expression gradually turned gloomy from its initial calm. Even the corrupt aura surrounding him vanished, and a terrifying spiritual pressure, like dark clouds obscuring the sun, began to stir, causing the temperature in the small house to drop several degrees.

Just as Zhou Ping's expression changed drastically, the terrifying spiritual pressure suddenly eased and then vanished completely, leaving Zhou Ping feeling as if he had experienced an illusion. He was both shocked and somewhat dazed.

At the same time, a slightly hoarse but powerful voice suddenly came from Wang Mian's mouth and immediately rang in Zhou Ping's ears.

"Junior Brother Zhou, you should handle your own affairs. I, Wang Mian, have endured for so many years, and I have no intention of resolving my problems through others. Even if the sect is willing, I, Wang Mian, am not!"

A hint of ferocity crept across Wang Mian's aged face, and his voice turned icy cold, making him seem like a completely different person to Zhou Ping.

Zhou Ping was horrified. The madness that Wang Mian suddenly revealed was full of deep-seated hatred. He had been carrying such a blood feud for so many years. If he were to successfully resolve his Dao Foundation injury and step into the Foundation Establishment stage, the entire Dingyuan City would probably be in turmoil.

Those few cultivation families, in particular, will surely be restless and unable to eat or sleep.

......

After bidding farewell to Senior Brother Wang, Zhou Ping did not linger anywhere else and returned directly to his residence.

Now that he knows how to repair the injury to his Dao Foundation, he needs to think carefully about his future plans.

Participating in the Five Elements Realm Trial four years later? He dismissed the idea without even thinking about it. Others might be willing to risk their lives, but Zhou Ping didn't want to get involved in it at all. He had understood the principle of "one's capacity is limited" since he was a child.

As for participating in the next Five Elements Realm Trial more than 20 years later, Zhou Ping thought about it and felt that it was indeed a relatively safe choice.

He has now gathered all the spiritual plants needed for his subsequent cultivation. He only needs to spend some time refining them into Golden Marrow Pills. Even though this is his first time refining such a pill, he believes that with sufficient raw materials, it shouldn't be too difficult to refine it in large quantities.

Although Zhou Ping's cultivation aptitude was less than impressive, the pharmacological knowledge and experience he had accumulated over the years gave him considerable confidence in his alchemy talent, which was far superior to his cultivation talent.

More than twenty years is enough time for him to steadily improve his cultivation to the late stage of Qi Refining. As for which level he can ultimately reach, no one dares to make a definitive conclusion before experiencing it.

However, based on Zhou Ping's experience, if he could ensure a sufficient supply of pills, there was still a very high probability that he could cultivate to the ninth level of the Qi Refining stage. After all, those cultivators with exceptional talent, such as Qin Changqing, had already reached the ninth level at such a young age. Compared to them, there was undoubtedly a world of difference between them.

Moreover, spending twenty years to cultivate from the fifth level of Qi Refining to the ninth level is a speed that is considered very mediocre in the Qinglian Xuanzong sect.

If Zhou Ping couldn't even do this given his possession of the mysterious agarwood and ample elixirs, then it would truly be somewhat unreasonable.

If he could have more spare time, he could also learn other spells and increase his other means of combat. In that case, his ability to protect himself after entering the Five Elements Realm would undoubtedly be greatly enhanced.

After thinking it over, Zhou Ping nodded to himself, feeling that this was the safest plan possible. It would ensure his own safety to the greatest extent possible while allowing him to confidently compete with others for various opportunities in the Five Elements Realm.

only......

This plan seemed sound, but it also had a huge hidden danger, which Zhou Ping finally realized after much deliberation—an unsolvable problem.

That is, more than 20 years later, Zhou Ping was already over 40 years old. Even if he could successfully resolve his Dao injury, and happened to find all the spiritual herbs for refining Foundation Establishment Pills in the Five Elements Realm, and immediately went into seclusion to break through to the Foundation Establishment stage after coming out, he would have already missed the best age for Foundation Establishment, and his chances of successfully establishing his foundation would be greatly reduced.

Given his lack of talent and aptitude, his chances of successfully establishing a foundation are even slimmer.

Once a cultivator is over forty years old, their vital energy and spirit will begin to decline, going from full to deficient, and they will no longer have the vigor they once had. The foundation-building process will become increasingly difficult. This is a consensus in the cultivation world, and no one can avoid it.

It seems that Uncle Yun and Senior Brother Wang were unaware of his spiritual root and aptitude, which is why they thought he was the best choice.

After all, for the vast majority of Qinglian disciples, it is not uncommon to achieve Foundation Establishment at the age of forty. As long as their talent is not bad, they still have a considerable chance of successfully achieving Foundation Establishment.

Cultivation geniuses like Qin Changqing, who possess unparalleled talent, are extremely rare. We cannot generalize. For most people, successfully establishing their foundation in their thirties or forties is already considered an exceptional achievement.

However, Zhou Ping, who possessed a pseudo-spiritual root, was different from these people. This spiritual root was not highly regarded by the world, and it was almost believed that such a spiritual root had no possibility of foundation building.

If he delays his Foundation Establishment until after the age of forty, he may truly miss the only opportunity to establish his foundation in this lifetime. What difference would that make from his current injury to the Great Dao? He would be unable to establish his foundation and would waste his life in the Qi Refining stage.

Thinking of this, Zhou Ping shook his head helplessly. He hadn't expected that after pondering for so long, he would still be caught in a dilemma and not know what to do.

So he had no choice but to get up and leave his residence. The flying boat transformed into a long rainbow and flew towards the Asking Pavilion on Jingxin Peak.

"The Five Elements Realm Trial will not begin for more than four years, so let's not think about it for now. Let's go to the Asking Pavilion and find out about these secrets first."